The huge marble Herzog-Ulrich-Monument (Duke Ulrich Monument) in the choir of the Dom zu Güstrow is a work by Philipp Brandin.
Brandin took three years to complete the first parts showing a kneeling Duke Ulrich of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (1527-1603) and behind him his first wife, Elizabeth of Denmark (1524-1586). The epitaph was enlarged in 1599 by Brandin’s pupils Midow and Berninger, to add Ulrich’s second wife, Anna of Pomerania (died 1626).
The caryatids (support pillars) show two female figures with a mirror (left) as a symbol of wisdom and a cross (right) as a symbol of faith. Both qualities considered desirable for a Renaissance ruler but not as vital as his noble birth as is made clear from the giant family tree in the background that confirms the noble origins of the Mecklenburgs.